Queen of Knives
by Galux Phoenix
Summary: **New Chappie!!** The Rogue’s most trusted thief is a woman. And someone out there wants to uncover the past she fought so hard to cover. The only people who can help her are a few of young knights and a couple of thieves. R/R!!!
1. Right Hand Thief

I was lying in bed half asleep when I came up with this fic, so don't blame me if it ain't that good. I haven't written in this section before, so please be nice.  
  
SUMMARY:  
  
The Rogue's most trusted thief is a woman. And someone out there wants to uncover the past she fought so hard to cover. The only people who can help her are a few of young knights and a couple of thieves.  
  
I don't own it.  
  
QUEEN OF KNIVES.  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
She weaved her way through the large crowds that were gathered in the market place. She was wearing black calf high boots, tan breeches, a white shirt and brown tunic; the perfect outfit for her purposes. Subtly she checked that all of her knives were still in place: her finest knife in a small -hidden- compartment of her breast-band, the two in her boots, the ones attached to each wrist, the two hidden in her tunic, the two hung on her belt half hidden by her tunic, the one at the small of her back and in case of emergencies two strapped to her thighs. She knew very few people would suspect a young woman of 18 to be one of the Rogue's finest thieves.  
  
She was a inch or two over average height, but she composed herself as if she ruled over everyone else. She was rather muscular for a girl of her stature. Her hair was a medium dark brown, tied in a horse tail, but when untied rested on her shoulders. Her skin was tanned to a brown. Her eyes were gold with flecks of tawny, giving her the thief name Golden.  
  
She slid through groups of people and stalls until she came to a stall selling black opals and other precious jewels, she looked over the merchandise with a scrutinizing golden eye. She found what she was looking for: a black opal pendent surrounded in small amethysts, next to it was another pendent with a black opal on its own. While the shop keeper was busy with a sale, she scooped them both up and slipped them into the small pocket on the inside of her tunic. 'One for him, one for me,' she thought grimly.  
  
"May I help you with anything, miss?" the shopkeeper asked after he had finished his other transaction.  
  
"No sir, I was just looking," she replied sweetly, flashing a smile to the older man. He smiled back before turning to someone else.  
  
She took the opportunity offered and slipped back into the crowed, silently cursing herself for having to turn on the charm. Looking around -after she had pocketed a few other peoples purses- she saw an alleyway to her left. Heading for it she didn't notice someone slip after her.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
The inn of the Dancing Dove was home to some of the finest thieves of Tortall. It was also home of the Rogue, the rulers of the Tortallian underground.  
  
She pushed open the door to the inn without hesitation, golden eyes taking in the scene before her. Near the hearth was the throne like seat for the King of Thieves. A long table as positioned in front of the throne like seat, most of the seats around the table were occupied.  
  
Walking over, she sat a couple of seats down from the Rogue. "Golden," he nodded to her.  
  
"Nathan," she nodded back. Golden reached into a few of her pockets drawing out two large purses and the plain black opal pendant, she passed them to the Rogue.  
  
The Rogue -Nathan- was only a few years older than she was, his sandy hair was cropped short, so it was only a few inches long and stood up in messy spikes. Nathan's eyes were bright blue that could melt any women's heart, except Golden's. Nathan knew he could never have her as his own, he was her most trusted friend, as she was his. It would never work out in the way he hoped.  
  
Golden fastened the larger black opal pedant around her neck, hiding the stone under her shirt. Nathan emptied them out onto the table and grinned with evil and contentment when he saw that each purse contained around fifty gold nobles. "Golden, you just stole yourself the position of my Right Hand Thief."  
  
The entire table went silent. There had never been a female Right Hand Thief as far as the history of the Rogue went. "What?!" Golden blurted out, confusion etched over fine features. "Have you lost it completely?"  
  
"No, I haven't 'lost it', everyone hear knows as well as I do that you're one of the best things that have happened to the Rogue in a long time," Nathan explained kindly to her. "You're swift and inconspicuous when needed. You have much more honed senses than most of us here, great reflexes, you're the only person I know who can carry a dozen knives while still look unarmed, and you're one of the best people here when it comes to knives. I could go on? Can anyone here give me a good reason why Golden shouldn't be my Right Hand Thief?" he looked around the table, most people were nodding in agreement.  
  
"Good. Matter settled, Golden, get up here," he ordered, indicating the seat on his right side. When Nathan saw her hesitate, he looked at her, when she met his gaze she realised he was completely serious about it.  
  
"Fine. If someone tries to kill you for this, don't blame me," she muttered as she stood and sat on the offered seat.  
  
He grinned at her, "Oh, I wouldn't do such a thing to one of my faithful servants."  
  
~*~*~*  
  
"I don't understand why you're bringing me here, Neal," questioned Lady Knight Keladry of Mindelan, as she and her dog Jump a few sparrows, followed Sir Nealan of Queenscove into the alleys and back -streets of Corus. "Where are we going anyway?"  
  
"The Dancing Dove, this is the home of the Rogue," Neal replied as he turned a corner. Kel looked around her surroundings, it wasn't exactly the best parts of the capital city for a couple of nobles and their dog and some birds.  
  
"The Rogue?" Kel asked.  
  
"The Rogue is basically king of thieves and wrong -do-errs from all over the country. Alanna's husband used to be the Rogue, before he got married," Neal explained it as if she were a small child.  
  
"You still don't have any respect for me, do you?" she question under her breath.  
  
He stopped outside an inn, the tattered sign above the door was of a dove. Neal smiled to himself as he dismounted Magewisper, Kel followed suit. They handed their horses over to the stable-hand who was on duty. He led them to the inn's door, where he bowed extravagantly to Kel.  
  
"Ladies first," he insisted. Kel sighed and pushed open the door . . . .  
  
~*~*~*  
  
I really hope you like the first chapter. Please review. I'd be really happy if you did.Please review!  
  
Galux Phoenix. 


	2. Information

I hope you liked the first chapter of the story. It should get better as I go on.  
  
I'm writing a prologue for this story, so you might like to read that fic too. If you don't you might get a little confused, but I'll try my best to explain everything in this story too! Thank you for reading! R\R!!!  
  
And thanks to the people who reviewed the first chapter! You guys all get a cookie! **Starts handing out cookies.**  
  
QUEEN OF KNIVES.  
  
CHAPTER 2: Information.  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
Most members of the Rogue had gotten over the shock of having Golden as the Right Hand Thief. A few might always oppose it, but then answer to a few knives and daggers on which the hilt was decorated with a strip of gold wire- Golden's personal trademark.  
  
She knew there were a couple of horses approaching the inn. Golden wondered often wondered why she was always the first to know if people came to the inn. Their sounds faded as the horses were led into the stables.  
  
Nathan looked up from the gold he was counting, he saw the wary looked on his friends face. "How many?" he asked softly, knowing that look all to well.  
  
"Two, or three, at most," she replied her eyes not leaving the door.  
  
A few voices drifted in from outside. The inn door pushed open. In the doorway stood two nobles and a dog that looked like it had seen a few to many battles, not to mention a handful of sparrows.  
  
Golden got to her feet, a knife in each hand. Her gold eyes narrowed at the male of the pair. "What do you want with us this time? *More* information?" she called to him.  
  
Neal smiled at her, "Golden, Golden, Golden, is that the way you great *all* your old friends?"  
  
"It is if the 'friend' could have me arrested in the blink of an eye," she snapped back, anger and annoyance built up in her veins. "Why are you here?"  
  
"I wanted to introduce you all to my friend. Golden, Kel; Kel, Golden." Neal strode towards their table, Golden shot a look at the thieves on one side of the table, they all moved down so there were two seats empty.  
  
"Please, sit down. I don't want to have to let her make you," Nathan offered before things got too violent. "It's nice to see you again Neal."  
  
"Same to you Nathan, Golden," she grunted a response as she sat down again.  
  
"Thank you, Nathan. I hope the pair of you are well," Neal replied as the noise built up again.  
  
"Do we have a good reason to not be well?" Golden questioned.  
  
"Uh -huh. I can see that you're in a fantastic mood today," Neal muttered under his breath. Kel elbowed him in the ribs lightly.  
  
"Ok, small talk over. What have you really come to us for? We know this isn't a social call," Nathan's voice was soft.  
  
"We were just checking to make sure that there were no evil elimination plots floating around. Are there?" Neal looked from Golden to the Rogue.  
  
"It'll cost you. There are usually always plots around. It just depends on who are the targets."  
  
"Are there any against anyone that we would need to know about? Royals? Nobles? Anyone?" Neal asked, his green eyes anxious.  
  
"I don't know. We have our best informants at the ready at all times, they constantly have their ears open. If the words 'assassination', 'assassin' and anyone of any importance appear in the same conversation, our people know about it. And we haven't heard anything about anyone important at all since the last time you asked," Golden replied so only the other three could hear.  
  
"That all? Nothing?" Kel inquired for the first time.  
  
Golden looked at Kel. Really looked at her. Her hair was almost the same shade as Golden's, cropped below her earlobes. Kel's eyes were a dreamers hazel that could freeze to a cold stone. She had broad shoulders and muscles that flexed under her clothes as she moved. Looking at her hands, Golden realised Kel's were as scared as her own were.  
  
"No, sorry. If there was we'd let you know, we know how to reach you," Nathan replied with a sigh.  
  
"Now, are you going to pay up, or what?" Golden chirped, a slow grin worked its way over her face.  
  
"Fine, fine. How many for today?" Neal asked with a sigh.  
  
"Since we couldn't really give you anything useful, just one each," Nathan put in.  
  
Neal rummaged around in his pockets for a moment before he pulled out a short throwing knife -with a gold wire wrapped around the hilt- and a small vile of clear liquid.  
  
Golden whistled under her breath, "Nice choice, Neal. Great quality, perfect balance *and* you got it with my trademark," she turned the knife over in her hands, her eyes lite up. "How much did you pay for this little beauty?"  
  
"A gold noble," Neal smirked as he saw Golden and Nathan falter.  
  
"How in gods name did you get it so cheap?" Nathan demanded.  
  
"I just called in a favour."  
  
"I don't want to know how you got indebted like that. A knife like that -without the wire- would cost fifty gold nobles easy," Golden commented, shaking her head.  
  
Neal smiled evilly at them.  
  
"Oh, Nathan, you know when you get so drunk, pass out and wake up with a headache you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy? This-" Neal pointed to the small vile "- is for those times. Put three drops of it into your tea and it should clear up."  
  
Nathan grinned wolfishly. "He doesn't mean you can get drunk all the time, mister," Golden snapped, elbowing him in the ribs.  
  
"Hey! Aren't you supposed to be on my side?"  
  
"No. I'm on no- ones side. Don't pout like that," Golden replied picking up her tankard, without looking at him.  
  
Kel and Neal exchanged quizzical glances. 'What was that about?' they both thought. Neal stood with a groan, "Well, we best going. If you hear anything, you'll pass it on?"  
  
"Of course," Golden replied. Neal grinned down at her, he took the tankard from where it was in her hands and drained it, his eyes never leaving hers.  
  
Kel and Neal left the inn followed by the white dog.  
  
"What was *that* about?" Nathan asked her in a whisper.  
  
"I don't really know," she replied. Complete And Utter Lie.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
Outside the inn Neal and Kel mounted their horses once more.  
  
"Why do you go to them for information? Why not ask the palace spies?" Kel wondered aloud.  
  
"Their information is usually right and do you think the palace spies would tell us simple knights *anything*?" Neal replied.  
  
Kel cringed, "Point taken. What happened between you and that Golden person back there?"  
  
"She tells them all that she has 'a talent with knives', but it is a lot more powerful than she choses to let on," Neal sighed.  
  
"You think she has the Gift? But with knives?"  
  
"I'm not entirely certain. I'll see if Alanna and George know anything about her having magic," Neal shook his head in exasperation.  
  
"What position does she have at the Rogue?" Kel asked.  
  
Neal blinked his green eyes as a thought just entered his head. "Which of Nathan's sides was she sitting on?"  
  
"His right I think."  
  
"His right!?" Neal yelped. "She's his Right Hand Thief? That is one of the greatest honours a thief can have! Wow, she really has advanced."  
  
"What do you mean by 'advanced'?"  
  
"Well, Golden started off here about six years ago, then she was just a little girl with a couple of dozen knives to her name. She knew how to use them too, she just wandered in there. She strode straight up to Nathan, he wasn't the Rogue then- only a young thief, put a hand on his shoulder exchanged a few words then sat down next to him. I think they knew each other from somewhere else because he never questioned her about anything of her past, he seemed to know it all already," Neal replied, smiling at the memories.  
  
"How did you know all that?"  
  
"I was there -with Alanna- that night. I don't know how or why, but as soon as she walked in the whole atmosphere changed somewhat. She made one of the biggest differences to a place like that in such a short time." Neal knew he wouldn't forget that night in a while.  
  
"Is it just me, or does she seem to act a bit more like a noble than a commoner?" Kel's question interrupted his thoughts.  
  
He thought about it for a moment. He bit his lip a little. "You won't tell anyone? Promise?"  
  
"Course not. Why?" Kel asked, interest running through her veins.  
  
"Golden does act like it at times at times. She hides it well, but a few people can actually tell. I'm surprised you noticed. The truth is: Golden *is* noble born."  
  
~*~*~*  
  
**Author hiding behind her computer chair** Did you like it? Huh? Huh?  
  
Well if you did could you leave a review for me? I would really like that! You get a cookie if you review!  
  
Thank you.  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
P.S. The button you want to push is down there! V. 


	3. Alex

I know I leave the chapters off at really annoying cliff- hangers. Don't kill me for it, ok. My mum always said to leave it on a high so more people will want to know what happens next.  
  
With the whole prologue thing -o, I'll post it when I finish this story. That way I can concentrate on this one for the mean time.  
  
Please review! And yes Youa, you get a cookie!!! So does everyone else who reviews this fic!!  
  
Things you probably should remember: **blah blah** that's parts a dream and *blah* are in italics, they just don't show up in my fics.  
  
QUEEN OF KNIVES.  
  
CHAPTER 3: title  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
A noble. One of the most trusted thieves of the Court of the Rogue was a noble. Why would a noble want to give up a title and lands to become a thief? Kel knew that she wouldn't give up being a noble to become something so low and dishonourable. So why did Golden give it up?  
  
"Do you know her birth name?" Kel asked as she and Neal put their horses in the palace stables.  
  
"No. I think only she and Nathan know it. She hasn't been addressed as anything else apart from Golden within my company."  
  
"Would we know anyone who might know?"  
  
"Why are you so interested in Golden?" Neal asked Kel.  
  
Kel thought about it for moment. "There is something strange about her. It's like she knows something no-one else does."  
  
"I think I know what you mean," Neal muttered under his breath.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
**She threw a knife at a target that hang on her wall. It buried itself in the centre of the black circle at the target's middle.  
  
"Perfect shot, Alex." A man leaned against the wall to her left. His voice was deep and clear. The man's hair was only an inch long, but was the same shade of brown as hers was. His eyes were a piercing blue.  
  
"Thanks Leo. I know how sparing you are with praise. I was thinking, most good thieves and people like that have a thief name, right? Well, I was trying to think of one for myself, but I'm stuck for ideas. Do you have any?" Alex asked as she retrieved her knife from the target.  
  
Leo looked at her for a little while, his eyes searched for an idea. Alex looked at him expectantly. Blue eyes met gold ones. "That's it! Your eyes!" he exclaimed.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Golden. The colour of your eyes. You could be called Golden. No -one would know it was the lovely noble, Lady Alexandria of Kenton. You've got the name, skill and weapons, but you still need a trademark," Leo told her.  
  
"You mean trademark like the lion you leave after a crime?" she toyed with the fine gold chain - that bore her family crest- at her throat and the knife still in her hand.  
  
"Exactly like that."  
  
An idea hit her like a hammer. "I know!" she exclaimed.  
  
She sat down on a chair that was next to the small, well used table. Alex put the knife on the table, she took off the gold chain and laid it next to the knife. Her gold eyes scanned over every inch of her knife until she found the small hook at the base of the hilt - right where the blade and hilt met- she opened the small clasp on the chain and threaded it through the hook before closing it.  
  
Alex wrapped the chain around the knife hilt all the way to the top, where she anchored the end of it. The chain was a gold streak winding its way up the knife hilt.  
  
"Very nice," Leo murmured. Alex spun and it a quick and fluent movement launched the knife at the target. It embedded itself a inch below where it should have.  
  
"I need something lighter than this. What's gold but doesn't weigh as much as a chain does?"  
  
"It is possible that you could use gold wire instead. It doesn't cost as much in the first place, and it can be easily custom made for you. Now, when do you leave this dump of a convent?" Leo asked, changing the subject smoothly.  
  
"Whenever I can find the opportunity to do so. I need a time when most of the old bags are busy," Alex pondered out loud.  
  
"Don't they do some weird religious thing on the night of the full moon?" Leo asked cunningly.  
  
"Of course! But they lock all the doors in case someone tries to get in. but they lock the door from the inside . . . ." she trailed off.**  
  
Golden woke with a start. Her heart was pounding in her ears and she was breathing fast. She was in her room at the Dancing Dove. Leo wasn't anywhere there, and nor should he be.  
  
She remembered the conversation she had with Leo, her teacher, that night. She couldn't possibly forget it, even if she wanted to.  
  
"Just a memory," she whispered to her empty room. *But*, she sat there and thought, *whenever I have that dream, someone tries to kill him-*  
  
"Oh crap." She jumped out of bed not caring what she was wearing- just her nightshirt- and ran straight to Nathan's room.  
  
"Nathan! Nath!" she yelled as she tried to knock his door down.  
  
"What in gods name is it Golden?" Nathan question as he opened his door.  
  
"I think Leo's in trouble. And lots of it," she fidgeted with the hem on one of her nightshirts sleaves.  
  
"You sure?"  
  
"Uh- huh. I have to get to him quickly. I'm going to take Dodger. I can't wait any longer. You know where I'll be." She turned and ran back to her room.  
  
She put on all of the sheaths that she could and placed in each one of her trademarked knives. She pulled on a pair of breeches, a shirt and her boots.  
  
"Time to move."  
  
~*~*~*  
  
Leo was thrown against a wall. He grunted in pain. A trickle of blood ran down his face from a small cut on his cheek.  
  
"Why are you doing this to me?" his voice was steady despite his pain.  
  
"Because I was paid to. My employer has a very high price for your head," Leo's attacker sneered at him.  
  
"How much do you recon he would pay me if I brought him your head instead?" Leo asked cheerfully. He climbed to his feet slowly.  
  
"That will never happen!" the other man snapped. He was skinny, weedy, and looked as if he was any skinnier he would be non-existent. His hair was a mess of dirty blonde and really needed a wash.  
  
"Do you know why I'm called Leo?" Leo asked, his voice cold with hate and fury.  
  
"Because you thought it sound good?"  
  
"No. There once was a legend that spoke of an animal the ruled over all others; The Lion. He was fast, strong, silent, fierce, and no other animals would dare challenge him.  
  
"He ruled over his land with an iron paw. And when he died he would pass the lands on his oldest son. Such a pity that the last lions died so long ago. Now, they are little more than legends," Leo informed the other man.  
  
"A old friend of mine told me that the Yamani word for lion was 'leo'. That was all he ever called me after that. And I became Leo. One of the greatest thieves around. Has anyone ever told you how any times I've been caught?"  
  
"No. how many time then?" the other man was getting annoyed at his target.  
  
"Once, and that was because I was young and stupid. Now, do want to try and complete your job?"  
  
"Yes. I'm sure your head would look great mounted on a wall."  
  
"Want to bet on that?"  
  
~*~*~*  
  
Dodger was a fine black mare. Known for her speed and fast reflexes. Golden urged her horse on softly. "Come on, girl. You can do this. Only a little further."  
  
She was riding to the very outskirts of Corus. To her teacher. Her friend. To one of the few people she really did care about.  
  
"Hang on, Leo. I'm on my way." She urged the mare into a faster speed.  
  
After a few minutes she slowed, then stopped Dodger outside an inn. The inn itself wasn't as big, nice or well kept as the Dancing Dove was. She dismounted handed her horse over to an stable -hand before dashing inside.  
  
She raced up the stairs, taking them two at a time until she reached the second floor. Golden ran down the hallway until she came to the very last door. She fiddled with the handle for a moment before swearing when she found it locked. She shoved the door with her shoulder; it did no good.  
  
Getting angry at the door she took a few steps back, then kicked the door with all her might, right next to the handle. The door shuddered a bit but didn't open. Angry burned off her skin as she kicked it again, this time the door slammed open.  
  
Looking inside the room she saw an upturned table and other various items scattered across the room like someone had just thrown them there.  
  
Leo was standing only a few feet away from the door, in his hands were two knives, both of quiet fine quality. A few metres in front of him was another man. This one was scrawnier than Leo, unlike Leo he held a medium axe in both hands.  
  
"So glad you came, Golden. I was beginning to think you wouldn't," Leo said, his voice calm.  
  
"Sorry I'm late, I got held up a bit. Need any help?" Golden replied just as calm.  
  
"Nah, I think I can handle this one on my one. What kind of thief would I be if I couldn't?"  
  
"A really, really bad one?"  
  
"Exactly. Now I have something to finish," he turned back to his attacker.  
  
"Huh?" the other man asked realising he was being spoken to.  
  
"I said I wanted to finish this now." Leo relied bluntly.  
  
Leo lunged at his opponent. Forcing the other man to defend as he slashed at his exposed arms. Leo skipped back so he was just out of range. Droplets of blood dripped onto the floor. The other man leaped at Leo, chopping down with the axe wildly. Leo jumped to the side and turned so that he face side on the his opponents arms.  
  
With the hilt of his knife he hit the other man square in the forehead, knocking him out cold for a few hours. Leo pushed him onto his back and took the axe off him. After checking to make sure that he was completely unarmed, Leo stood with a groan.  
  
"You ok?" Golden asked, her eyes filled with worry.  
  
"I'm fine. Did you have the dream again?" Leo put a hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Yes. I better get all your cuts cleaned. Sit," she ordered him before collecting some hot water and a cloth.  
  
She pulled a chair up to where he was sitting. Golden dipped the cloth into the water before dabbing it against his cuts and wounds.  
  
"I still wonder how you manage to get yourself into positions like this, Leo, care to explain?" she asked mildly.  
  
"I was reading a book in bed and he came through the window in here. I heard a noise from out here so I ventured out here and he though me at the wall."  
  
"That gotta hurt," she winced in sympathy.  
  
"It did," his voice was dry as autumn leaves. "He nicked me a bit," Leo gestured to the cut on his cheek. "I involved him in pleasant conversation- "  
  
"As pleasant as you can get when he's trying to kill you," She remarked.  
  
He glared at her. "I was halfway through the conversation when you burst in, thank you. I don't need my student's help, I hope you realise."  
  
"Oh, you *really* need it now." Both knife experts looked at Leo's attacker as he struggled to his feet. The scrawny man looked around until he saw his axe on the table a few metres away. He leaped at it. Not fast enough. Two knives had been buried in his chest. Both of them had been decorated with a strip of gold wire.  
  
"Nice shot," Leo commented.  
  
"Thanks," Golden drawled, her voice dry.  
  
"No problem. Anyway, I wanted to know who he was working for, but he never got a chance to answer," he gestured to the corpse laying on his floor.  
  
"Bummer." {AN: do they even use 'bummer' in times like this? '~' I'm not sure '~'. Can anyone tell me if they do?}  
  
"I want you to come back to the Dove with me. I don't want anyone else coming after you," she said, her eyes concerned.  
  
"Why should I? I'm older than you, I don't need you as my body-guard."  
  
"Because you're the only family I have left, Leo, I don't want to lose you as well."  
  
"Fine. But I want my own room," he smiled at her.  
  
She grinned back. "Ok. While you're there, don't do anything to stupid."  
  
"Is that what you expect me to do? Something stupid?" he mock glared at her.  
  
Golden's grin widened. "Honestly?"  
  
~*~*~*  
  
did you like that chappie? This time I didn't leave it on a cliffie! Please review!  
  
And Julia if you're reading, HI!!!  
  
GalPhoe.  
  
Please review!!! 


	4. Bad News and Romance

I know that I take forever to update and my chapters aren't really that long, but I don't get a lot of time to write and stuff. I try but school takes up a lot of time!  
  
I just realised I made a mistake in the last chapter when I said that the lions had died out. I remembered that there were some lions in the Emperor Mage. Sorry about that!!!!  
  
And this chappie *does* have some romance in it. I don't know what you'll think of it, so tell me! I hope you'll like it.  
  
Please Review!!!!!  
  
QUEEN OF KNIVES.  
  
CHAPTER 4: BAD NEWS.  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
A few weeks after Golden had dragged her former teacher back to the Dancing Dove news came in. Bad news.  
  
She sat in her chair, her feet on the table in front of her, tankard of ale in one hand and in the other she was twirling a knife between her fingers. Her gold eyes were unfocused and glazed over as she sat there staring blankly at the knife target that had been set up on the opposite wall. A couple of knives had already been thrown in order to see who was the best a throwing knives.  
  
"I'm the best!" a male voice interrupted her thoughts and she snapped back to reality.  
  
"No! I am!" another argued. She looked at the speakers. Both of them were about her age, they both were reasonably good thieves, just not the best.  
  
One of them, Swiftness, was good at fast steals. His hair was black and cut quiet short, his eyes a starling green. Swiftness was renowned for having a temper and getting himself completely drunk on holidays. He was tall for his age, but he was lanky and looked uncoordinated, which was completely the opposite, Swiftness had grace.  
  
The second of the two was Jackson. When people asked him why he hadn't got a thief name he would answer with a simple 'I like me name just the way it is,'. Jackson's eyes were a deep grey, his hair a sun bleached blonde that brushed the tips of his ears carelessly.  
  
"You couldn't hit a target if you were sitting on it!!" Swiftness snapped.  
  
"Yeah? Well you couldn't hit one if it bit you on the arse!!" Jackson retorted.  
  
The two of them stood there yelled abuse and insults at each other with out a care in the world. A malicious smile broke over Golden's face as she watched them. after a few more minutes of their yelled the pair of them stopped to catch their breath.  
  
"You two really want to know who's the best?" one of the server girls, Jerri, asked.  
  
"Who then?" Swiftness snapped as Jackson drained his ale.  
  
"Her," Jerri jerked her head at Golden who was still smiling maliciously. "Have either of you two seen her throw? I have. She's the best," Jerri's voice was matter of fact.  
  
Golden knew what they were talking about, they didn't exactly keep their voices down.  
  
"Are you sure about that?" Jackson asked before raising his voice a notch, "Are you going to prove Jerri right about this, Golden?"  
  
She gave him a quizzical look before draining her tankard and standing up. "Three shots each. Both of you against me. Three metres from the target."  
  
"Make it four," Swiftness interrupted.  
  
"Ok, then," Golden said as she took out another two knives from her boots to add to the on still in her hand. "One of you can go first."  
  
Jackson shrugged and stepped up to a line that was painted on the floor, four metres away from the target they were supposed to hit.  
  
His first knife hit just below the centre on the target, his second an inch to the left of it and his third landed barley three millimetres off.  
  
Golden tilted her head to one side, "Not too bad for someone like you."  
  
Jackson totally ignored her comment as he pulled the knives from the target. Swiftness stalked over to the line pulled out three knives from his boots. He threw them in a fast succession. All three landed in the centre circle, two on the outer edges and one at its centre. He sent Golden a smug smirk.  
  
"Beat that, if you're so good."  
  
"You bet I will." Golden's smile was pure evil.  
  
She settled herself on the painted line and threw her first knife, making it land in the centre of the target. In a rapid movement she had the other two knives barely a millimetre away from her first knife.  
  
Her smile was smug as she looked at the expressions on her friends' faces. "I did tell you I would beat you, did I not?"  
  
"I told you that she was the best!" Jerri exclaimed happily.  
  
"I'm not sure about best in the country, but I give 'em a run for their money," Golden stated as she returned to her room.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
"You know that they were telling you the truth, don't you?" Nathan asked as she stepped into her room.  
  
"What do you mean, Nath?" Golden wondered as she locked the door behind her.  
  
"You're the best. And you know it well. Why do you deny the truth? You know as well as I that you could go back to the old place and show everyone who said you wouldn't make it that you did. You put yourself down to much, Alex. Do I have to make you feel better about yourself?"  
  
"I don't deny it. Leo is better than me, and Alex died a long time ago," Golden shook her head at him.  
  
Nathan took a few steps forward and gripped her elbows tightly. "Why do you lock me out? Why do you deny love? Why do you push away something that you know you want?"  
  
"Because, you're my oldest friend and if it didn't work out, it might ruin our friendship. I don't deny it, love just messes up your senses. And what if I don't want it?" Golden replied her tone serious.  
  
"Don't lie to me, Alex. I can read you like a book. I *know* you want it," his blue eyes showed emotions Golden had never seen before.  
  
Before she could reply, Nathan leaned forward and kissed her. His lips caressed her own. She was stunned with shock for a moment before she wrapped her arms around his neck and started to kiss him back.  
  
"I knew you wanted this," he said as they pulled apart, his smile smug.  
  
Nathan picked her up and sat her down on the bed and kissed her again.  
  
"I care so much about you, Nathan," Golden whispered as he pushed her gently onto her back.  
  
He smirked down at her. "You think I don't know that?" he asked and kissed her again.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
Golden was polishing her favourite knife as she sat in the common room of the Dancing Dove. It was only an hour or two after dusk and the inn was only starting to get rowdy and crowded. The front door was slammed open with such force she almost thought it would be knocked off its hinges.  
  
Half startled, her golden orbs snapped off her knife and went to the person standing in the door way, the man was breathing heavily almost as if he had been running or on a tiring journey. He half walk- half staggered over to her and handed over a sealed envelope.  
  
"Get this man some water!" she ordered and a tankard of cold water was passed to him. Tearing open the envelope, she read its contents her eyes widening a bit as she finished.  
  
"Is this true?" she asked the messenger.  
  
" 'Fraid so, Golden," his voice was glum.  
  
"This is serious bad news. They need to be warned," Golden muttered as she tapped the envelope against the table top.  
  
"Wha' do ya mean, girl?" he quested.  
  
Golden looked up at him. His hair was a vague shade of mousy brown, his eye a dull blue -grey. He was lean, but bordering on thin. She gave a sad sigh, "They're friends of mine. They haven't done anything wrong or anything that they should be killed for."  
  
Golden put her knife back in its proper housing and left the common room only to go to the stables and bird cages. She wrote a short note on a slip of parchment before she tied it to the leg of a small -but quiet fast- bird.  
  
"Take it to Neal, my love," she whispered to the bird as she let it fly.  
  
"And here I was thinking, that I was your love," a voice behind her remarked softly.  
  
"Well, Nath, you can be sure you have no major competition in your battle over me," she told him as he wrapped her in his arms.  
  
"What about the bird? He seems pretty attached to you."  
  
"Him? He ain't such a great kisser," she shook her head.  
  
"Am I a great kisser?" his voice was whisper quiet, but was full of raw emotion. Golden shivered.  
  
"I'm not sure. You'll have to give me a demonstration, I'm afraid."  
  
Nathan bent down slightly and kissed her with passion she never knew existed. "That good enough demonstration for you?"  
  
"I don't believe so."  
  
~*~*~*  
  
I hope you like the romance that was in this chappie. Please tell me what you think of it in a review.  
  
Press the pretty purple button. You know you want to. Press it! Please?  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
The button you want is down there V. 


	5. Warnings

Sorry about not updating very often. I have seven assignments to finish at the moment so it's a bit hard to keep up with my writing, but I try cuz I love my fans.  
  
Evil, Tormenting, Annoying, But Still Loved, Older Brother: you never had fans.  
  
GalPhoe: yes I do. out there **points at readers**.  
  
E,T,A,BSL,OB: next time you won't have an excuse **stomps off**.  
  
GalPhoe: strange guy.  
  
On wit da ficcy!  
  
QUEEN OF KNIVES.  
  
Chapter 5: Warning.  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
Neal plonked down opposite to Kel, who was in her room after getting a book from one of the libraries. "Why do they make us go to those stupid meetings that have absolutely no relevance to us?"  
  
"It was relevant to me." Kel replied barely glancing up from her book.  
  
"That's because you're the one who has to run things at New Hope. I just do the healing."  
  
Kel's smile was humourless. "You're not the one who has an entire town wanting to complain about every decision you make. Or listen to every man who thinks he can do your job better than you can."  
  
"Yes, but that's just who you are, Kel, someone who listens to every cursed thing people have to say to you. Like that Tirrsmont man, who thought that he should be in charge instead of you. Kel, you listened to his complaints every time he made them. And all of the people who thought that you shouldn't be a knight." Neal pointed out.  
  
Kel opened and closed her mouth to reply, but then stopped. Neal was right. As if he knew what she was thinking he leaned back with a triumphant smile.  
  
"Ha."  
  
The call of a messenger bird rang though the air, disturbing the comfortable silence that passed between the two best friends. Neal jumped up and opened the largest part Kel's window so he could she the outside world properly. A medium sized, freckled brown messenger bird darted in and landed on Neal's shoulder.  
  
"Oh, crap," Neal whispered as he looked the bird over. "This is one of Golden's messengers."  
  
"And that is bad because . . . ?" Kel prodded.  
  
"She only sends a bird out in major emergencies." Neal's eyes were grave and his voice a soft murmur.  
  
"Oh." Some of the colour drained from Kel's face.  
  
He gave a sigh. "Yes, 'Oh'."  
  
Taking off the strip of parchment Neal felt all of his nerves tingling in fear and worry. *What if it's news about any assassination attempts?* Neal wondered to himself. He unrolled it with slightly trembling fingers.  
  
He read it out loud, but only so he a Kel could hear: "I want you and Kel to met me at the stables tomorrow at dawn. You don't understand how important it is for me to talk to you. I warn you to watch your backs at all times. You never know who's out and about. Burn this when you've finished.  
  
-- Golden."  
  
"That was blunt," Kel commented, dry voiced.  
  
"I know." *That was blunter than it normally would be. I wonder why,* the superstitious part of him wondered.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
He sat in a corner. A dark, inconspicuous corner. Carefully he lifted the tankard of ale to his lips and took a sip, his light, golden brown eyes never leaving her. He had been hired. Not to kill her, no, just all the people she cared about: her lover, former teacher, friends, anyone she considered close.  
  
Sending one of his best men to kill her teacher had been stupid. His man was dead and that idiot of her old teacher was still alive and well. Not good from where he was sitting.  
  
"No one to sit with you, David? That's fair sad," a voice said sarcastically. David's employer sat down next to him.  
  
"How goes the hunting?" David asked.  
  
His employer shook his head. Dark brown curls jumping at the momentum. "I wouldn't know. I'm not the one who's supposed to be doing the hunting."  
  
"They're tricky," David blurted.  
  
"Huh?" the brown hair man blinked.  
  
"The people around her are tricky. They seem to know if someone is trying to kill them or not. It's almost like they for- warned," he stopped himself mid- sentence. "That's it! She's so close to the Rogue. Of course they would have spies and informants everywhere. I just have to find out who, destroy them, then she won't be able to get as much information as fast!"  
  
The other man thought about it for a minute. He nodded, a mixture of emotions ran through him: hope that David would pull it off, glee that Alex would be out of the way, and annoyance that David hadn't thought of it earlier. "Go for it."  
  
He stood and left the Dancing Dove, smiling on the inside. She soon would pay for everything she put him through.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
Golden was aware he was in the room. No matter how many disguises or illusion spells he used she always knew if he was there.  
  
When she was just a young girl, he only a year older, he had saved her life. Golden recalled the situation many times and wondered if it just as fate had planned it or if it was a coincidence.  
  
*As a young, twelve year old girl Alex had always liked to go to the city's markets. They were always busy; packed full of people. While she was haggling with a shopkeeper, someone had thrown a knife, though at the time she thought it was meant for someone in front of her. The person in front bent down and picked up a dropped coin as the knife passed through the space where he was standing. When it was only a few inches away from her face someone reached out and snatched it from the air. Alex just stood there and blinked, she knew someone had just saved her life.  
  
Looking around she saw the boy who had snatched the knife. He was slinking his was through the crowds towards an inn. Making a quick deal with the shopkeeper she followed the boy.  
  
Her movements didn't falter as she pushed open the door to one of the roughest inns of that region. Looking around she saw the boy working his way towards the stairs, she followed him and as he reached the bottom of the stairs she grabbed one of his sleaves.  
  
His hair was a mess of dark brown curls, his skin a light tan. Her regarded her with light blue eyes.  
  
"Give me a look at that knife." It wasn't a question.  
  
"What knife?" he blinked innocently at her.  
  
Alex sighed and rubbed her temples. This boy was infuriating. "The one that was meant to kill me. the one you just put in your pocket."  
  
"Why do you want it?" he asked, blue eyes narrowed.  
  
"To find out who sent it. If I know who sent it my way, then I can eliminate the problem."  
  
He blinked in slight confusion. She knew a lot about knives, that was plain. He knew she was also noble, but a noble lady who walked straight into a really rough inn and asked to look at a knife that was meant to kill her. That was something you didn't see every day.  
  
Alex seemed to be getting impatient. She called out to the bartender, "Jack, can I have some lemonade?"  
  
"Aye, be there in a minute, Alex," he called back.  
  
She was on first name terms with the inn's owner?! That was even stranger.  
  
When the barkeep came over her held a tankard of lemonade and a pitcher. "Can we use one of the private rooms?" she asked.  
  
"Aye, lass. Follow me." he started to led her to a door near the stairs, Alex waited a few moments before letting out an exasperated noise. She placed one hand on the boy's shoulder before steering him in the direction that Jack went.  
  
She looked around the small room Jack led them to. There was a table and a few chairs. "Sit," she ordered the boy.  
  
"Who are you?" he blurted out.  
  
"Alexandria of Kenton. Now, who are you?" she told him with a sigh.  
  
"Daniel Nielsen. Why would a noble come 'ere?"  
  
"Because I fit in better here than at home. Can I have a look at that knife? The one that was meant to kill me?" she asked the slightly older boy in all seriousness. Alex could feel her nerves humming with frustration, slight fear and anger.  
  
Daniel blinked a few time before drawing the knife out of his pocket, Alex took it. She looked it over with a careful eye. Her gold eyes were cold and hard as she noticed the drop of poison at the very tip. Alex gave the knife a professional flip and it landed point first in the tabletop.  
  
"I am going to kill him," she muttered, her voice as cold as her eyes.  
  
"Kill who, miss?" Daniel asked. She had forgotten he was even in the room.  
  
"An assassin, by the name of Louis. That's one of his trademark knives."  
  
Alex stopped halfway out the door. An idea springing into her mind. Turning around she drew out one of her knives, Daniel backed off a bit, his face still level, but his movements slightly nervous.  
  
"I'm not going to kill you," she snapped. "You ever hear of a blood bond?"  
  
Daniel nodded; you didn't spend most of your life working with knives and thieves to not know. Alex drew the knife along the palm of one hand leaving a thin train of red blood. She beckoned him to do the same. He gave her his hand. She did the same on his before she gripped the two bleeding hands together.  
  
"Thanks, for saving my life," she said with a grin. Then is all seriousness added, "A pact. Unbreakable."  
  
And with that she was out the door.  
  
Daniel blinked a few more times. Had a girl. A noble girl just got him to make a pact? An unbreakable pact? It was almost as if she had taken over his mind for a few minutes and wiped very rational thought from his head? For someone so young she sure knew how to work someone's mind. He certainly knew he now had someone worth competing against for the Majesty of Knives title. He would let her live for a while longer, but if he saw that she could hold any possible threat to him she would never draw a knife again.*  
  
Golden blinked a few times, bringing herself back to reality. She looked down at the thin scar that ran along the palm of one hand.  
  
"Unbreakable."  
  
~*~*~*  
  
Did you like it? **author hides behind chair as rotten fruit is thrown.**  
  
Okay so maybe you didn't like it.  
  
Please leave a review! And could you guys give me a few ideas for latter chappies?  
  
Lots a luv,  
  
GalPhoe.  
  
Please Review! V. 


	6. Titles

I hope you liked my last chappie. And I know I update really slowly. Sorry bout that.  
  
Thanks to all my beloved reviewers, you guys all get TWO cookies for being nice peoples!! If you all want more cookies you're gonna have to give me a review. That seems fair to me.  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
QUEEN OF KNIVES.  
  
CHAPTER 6: TITLE.  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
The stables appeared completely deserted when Kel and Neal arrived. The pair looked around until they saw Golden sitting up in the hay loft. The thief slid down and met them at the ladder.  
  
"You said it was urgent?" Neal asked her.  
  
"It is. We have half an hour before the holsters arrive. Get up there." She indicated the hay loft before starting to climb up the ladder once more.  
  
"Like I said before: I want you guys to watch your backs. Nathan and I have all of our best-"  
  
" 'Our'?" Neal asked her, eyebrows raised.  
  
"Shut up. Our best people are always out gathering. The information they return is almost always correct. We got a message a few days ago, rumouring an assassination plot," Golden told the two knights.  
  
"And you are all nervous because . . .?" Kel prodded.  
  
"Because they were against you two."  
  
The stables fell silent.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
David watched her as she slipped out of the Dancing Dove and into the busy streets of Corus. Her movements were fluid, but her saw a touch of nervousness under her normal cool and calm exterior. Something was different today. Something he wanted to find out about.  
  
David felt eyes on him. He looked down at the streets once more. There she stood. Her gold eyes were hard and cold as she glared at him. If looks could kill he would be one of the deadest people in the country.  
  
He gave an involuntary shiver at the thought of his death at her hands. He glanced down at the one person he was supposed to hurt the most only to find her gone. She had merged so well in the crowds in the busy Corus streets he had lost her completely.  
  
If he wanted to live to see a few more days he better get his job over and done with. His employer wasn't going to sit around and wait for some targets to be killed for very long.  
  
With a sigh, he made his way back down to the crowded streets. He knew he had to do something soon.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
Kel and Neal blinked and Golden for several minutes.  
  
"What do you mean?" Kel asked after a while, her voice slow.  
  
"There are people running around trying to kill the pair of you. That's what I mean."  
  
"Why are you telling us?" Neal asked the one question that had been plaguing Golden's mind for a while.  
  
"You two don't have anything that is worth being punished so much against you. You're good people and I don't want to see my friends being killed because someone wants to hurt me."  
  
"Who wants to hurt you? Why do they want to hurt you?" the curious part of Neal got the better of him.  
  
"He used to be a friend of mine; now he's just a power hungry arsehole. He wants the Majesty of Knives title. And he isn't going to get it. He is never going to learn that the title isn't just about the skill you have; it's how you use it."  
  
The two young knights blinked at her. That was probably the longest speech she had made in their company. "And you have this skill?"  
  
Golden gave a sigh. "Yes. I wouldn't have gotten as far as I have if I didn't have any skills."  
  
"So basically you're the Queen of Knives?" Neal asked.  
  
Golden had never really heard it be put that way. Sure people told her that she had the talent and skill that the position demanded but they never said that she actually was the Queen of Knives. Leo and Nathan had mentioned it to her that she deserved the title on a few occasions but they didn't tell her she already had the title.  
  
"I guess you are right. He is the only competition that I have and he won't exactly be around for much longer." A slightly malicious smile crept over her lips. "You can be sure of that. Just make sure that the pair of you have someone watching your backs. I don't like it when my friends get killed off."  
  
"We'll be fine. Sometimes I think you worry too much," Neal told her with a small grin.  
  
"Me? Worry about you? Never," she replied with another, more sincere, smile.  
  
Kel then saw that the two of them were friends, and good friends at that. Most thieves if the had friends who were about to be killed wouldn't warn their friends, but this one did. There was something very different about her. She had the honour most thieves lacked.  
  
She was most defiantly a noble. Which noble was the question that Kel wanted answered.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
**GalPhoe hiding behind chair her again.** I really hope you liked that chapter. I thought it sucked, I didn't make it very long at all. This author hopes you'll forgive her.  
  
Please review, you all get really big home made cookies.  
  
GalPhoe. 


	7. Soft Spot

Hi y'all. I'm really glad that people didn't think that the last chappie of this fic was a crap as I thought it was.  
  
Everyone gets some of their favourite cookies for reviewing and making my day. Luv yaz all.  
  
GalPhoe.  
  
QUEEN OF KNIVES.  
  
CHAPTER 7: SOFT SPOT.  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
Three weeks had past since Golden had warned her two noble friends to watch their backs. Kel was always conscious of the people around her: the way they moved, any weapons they might be carrying, and the people they were seen talking to. Neal on the other hand seemed to be careless, but Kel knew her mage friend was more vigilant and honed than she had ever seen him.  
  
It seemed that he had picked up a few tricks of the- not- so- trustworthy trade.  
  
Kel knew that no one was following her on foot as she was walking through the palace towards the practice courts. What she really wanted to do was work off some extra energy, so she was going to practice her tilting.  
  
After she had saddled Peachblossom and had led him to the gate she saw that someone was lounging against the fence near the gate gazing out at the empty practice court.  
  
Kel approached with slight caution. "I don't know what you're afraid of, Kel, I would have thought you were used to people showing up where they are least expected," Golden told her as she came over. She turned around and smiled slightly without parting her lips.  
  
"Well, I think all the others I've gotten used to, but you're different. You surprise the world without trying to." Kel gave the thief a small smile of her own.  
  
"I heard you're pretty good with that thing." Golden gestured to the lance Kel held under one arm.  
  
"A lot of people would say you heard right," Kel said with another smile.  
  
"How's Neal holding up? I wasn't sure how well he'd take the news of people wanting to kill him," Golden asked the slight concern and worry evident in her eyes.  
  
"I think he's doing ok. It just seems like he gets a bit on edge now and then."  
  
Golden nodded in understanding. Relief stopped her from worrying for a little while. He was one of her best friends and she didn't want to see him get hurt because of her.  
  
"I just want you two to keep an eye out for each other, friends should stick together. Try to not get yourselves killed. I will never speak to either of you again if you do."  
  
"I'll try not to, I promise. Don't worry, Golden, it'll be fine," Kel reassured the woman thief.  
  
"Hope so."  
  
With that Golden turned and started to walk back to the inn of the Dancing Dove. Kel watched her retreating figure thoughtfully.  
  
"What do you make of her, Peachblossom?" Kel asked her horse who had started to nibble at the grass by his feet.  
  
The large gelding snorted and tossed his head, as if he was telling his rider to hurry up if they were going to start tilting.  
  
"I hope that means you like her," Kel muttered under her breath with the smallest of smiles.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
"I want you to kill them NOW!!" Daniel Nielsen roared at the cowering David.  
  
His temper and patience had been stretched to the limit previously, then David came and reported that he hadn't made anymore advances where it came to the job he was supposed to be doing.  
  
"How should I kill them, sir?" David asked his voice cautious and quiet.  
  
"I don't care! Just kill them!" Daniel barked, even more harsh than he was before.  
  
David then realised that the man her was working fro was completely insane. He wanted to kill all the people this one female thief had ever cared for just so he could take the Majesty of Knives title from her. If that wasn't insane then what was?  
  
"If those people are bot dead within two weeks I will personally make sure that you are," Daniel threatened his voice deadly soft. "Understand?"  
  
"Yes, sir."  
  
"Good." Daniel turned on his heel and strode from the room as if nothing had happened.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
That night Golden sat in her usual place beside Nathan. All her nerves were on edge and heightened fro a reason unknown to her. She watched every single person in the room like a hawk, her gold eyes trailing after all of the room's inhabitants' movements.  
  
Instinct had told her to arm up quiet heavily that night. There were two knives in each boot, three under her tunic, two strapped to each wrist, one on a leather band around her neck, two at the small of her back, and her best knife hidden in her breast band.  
  
All in all, she was the dream of the city's blacksmiths. She always reasoned that one could never have enough knives. No one was yet to prove her wrong on that front.  
  
Suddenly she saw it. The trademark black hilted knife that was heading towards her lover. To her it seemed as if all time had slowed down. She stood and reached out and plucked the knife from mid- air.  
  
And with that, time continued.  
  
As Golden turned the knife over in her hands she recognised it. The way it looked as if it was several years old. The way she had seen it fly through the smoky air of the inn.  
  
This was the knife that had been aimed at her six years previously.  
  
"He is never going to see the light of day again," Golden warned no one in particular.  
  
Nathan rested a warm hand of her arm. "Calm down, my love. We'll make sure he pays for that."  
  
"He's going to pay with his life."  
  
~*~*~*  
  
Daniel smiled a pure evil smile as he watched Golden save the life of her lover. He knew that the girl had a large soft spot for the Rogue, now he saw just how large the soft spot actually was.  
  
As they pair of them spoke Daniel was thinking fast. How to get the girl out of the way? He didn't want the noble harmed until the right moment. The moment where she would hand over the title that was rightfully his.  
  
He still didn't understand how this noble girl had managed to advance so far up the ranks of thieves in only a few years. What he found amusing was that no one had guessed that she was noble.  
  
Daniel was looking forward to telling the world that their beloved Golden was indeed Alexandria of Kenton. The noble who disappeared from a convent at the age of thirteen.  
  
The noble the world thought of as dead.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
I thought that chappie was better than my last one. If you all press the lovely button down there V, you all get lots of nice and tasty cookies from me.  
  
GalPhoe. 


	8. Memories of Meetings

Thanks to all the people who told me to hurry up and update. This chapter goes out to gray rain, who sent me a whole lot of great reviews. Sorry I haven't updated in ages. I had exams to do and I was working on one of my other fics.  
  
If I owned anything out of TP do you think I would be sitting here?  
  
QUEEN OF KNIVES.  
  
CHAPTER 8: Memories Of Meetings.  
  
Galux Phoenix.  
  
Time for drastic measures.  
  
The love of her life was just attacked by the one person who she wanted to kill the most. Daniel was on top of Golden's very long list of people she wanted to be pushing up daisies. She scowled at the ceiling as she lay awake in bed. She was confused, frustrated, and angry.  
  
Very angry.  
  
Her heart iced over at the thought of what Daniel would do to every person she had ever loved if he got his filthy little hands on them.  
  
She heart started to freeze over when she was twelve, when she first went to the convent. Her parents had sent her to a convent in a small town a few miles away from the capital city of Corus only a month before her thirteenth birthday. She had met many people there: a couple of friends down at one of the local inns, and it was there when she found the part of Daniel that was almost pure evil hovering under the surface of innocence. That was when she became cold.  
  
But then again, it was where Leo found her and took a young noble under his wing. And where she started to see Nathan in a whole new light.  
  
It was when she was sitting in the garden of the convent in the middle of the night when a man sat down beside her. Many of the girls her age would then jump up and scream or would start to flirt with him, Alexandria of Kenton did neither.  
  
She just sat there staring ahead. Leo was surprised that this young teenager would just sit there and stare straight ahead as if she was used to having strange -and most likely not too trustworthy- men coming and sitting by her in the middle of the night.  
  
Then Alex surprised him even more by her first comment of the night. "You realise that you should work on walking more quietly over dry leaves? Anyone passing by could hear you if they tried."  
  
"What do you mean?" Now he was just plain confused. This was one strangle girl.  
  
"You walk loud. And is there any particular reason that you are sitting on a bench in the middle of a convent in the dead of the night?" she asked, changing the subject.  
  
"I was looking for Alexandria of Kenton. I was thinking about offering her some real trailing." Leo noticed that she blinked once at the mention of her name.  
  
"And what makes you think that she'll accept your offer?"  
  
"The fact that you and I both know that what you want most is to be one of the best knife wielders in Tortall. I was given the job of looking out for you, I've seen the way you resented being noble, I also saw the practices you do in your room during the night. I also noticed the two knives under your sleaves and the two in the riding boots you are wearing." She smiled humourlessly for a moment before her face became still once more.  
  
"It seems that you have spent at least the past week and a half spying on me after all. You really should work on being more quiet; try to stay on thicker branches when you're in trees." She stood up and smoothed out the pair of soft leather breeches she was wearing. "I will talk to you another time, Leo."  
  
Leo sat there and looked flabbergasted. How in Mithros name did she knew who he was. The truth was, even if Leo didn't know it, that Alex had been down to one of the inn's near enough to the convent that she could walk there without collapsing for exhaustion, and without someone discovering she had disappeared. She had talked to some of the few people she trusted there and gave them a rough physical description of the man who had followed her for the past week.  
  
"So, do you two know who he his?" instead of the good quality clothes she normally had, Alex was wearing poor fitting and filthy garments that she had borrowed off a friend for when she came down to the closer pubs and inns.  
  
"I've heard his name is Leo, and he was sent by someone in Corus to watch over 'the possible Queen of Knives' if you know what that means," one of the two thieves she was talking to said. His name was Jacob, and he was quite tall and lanky for someone who was only fourteen years old.  
  
The girl sitting next to him, Amelia, was his twin sister, and they looked exactly alike, right down to the last freckles on their noses. "I have no idea who the Queen of Knives is, but I heard that there was a prophecy about a wench with the legacy of much land and the love of a king, or something along those weird lines." Amelia gave a shrug and took a large gulp from her tankard.  
  
"So that basically means the Queen of Knives will be born into a noble house and will fall in love with a king of some sorts?" Alex wondered.  
  
"Something like that.," the twins answered in unison.  
  
Alex sat there for a while. He mind was in a blur of thoughts. There were only two people in the country who were allowed to call themselves king. The Rogue and the king of Tortall. She was still there an hour later, frowning and the half full tankard of ale in front of her. She didn't understand it at all.  
  
"Looks a lot like you've had a tough night." Her head snapped up at the sound of his voice. A smile spread across her features. "You faring ok up there?"  
  
Alex looked at the young man who sat down opposite her. Bright blue eyes danced with laughter, dirty blond hair was wind tossed. "Hey, Nath. How long did it take for you to track me to here?" her tone of voice was slightly depressed.  
  
Nathan frowned at her and covered one of her hands with his own. "You sure you're ok? You know I don't like to see my best friend unhappy, now. Tell me what's wrong."  
  
"Not in here." She stood and led him outside so they wouldn't be overheard. "I can't take it much more, Nath!" she started to pace up and down in a small clearing out the back of the pub.  
  
"What can't you take?" Now he was interested. It was rare for her to break out in a fit of anger or confusion.  
  
"Being me! Why couldn't I have been born into a family like yours? A family that wouldn't send me off to some stupid convent or ban me from using knives of pick pocketing. Why did I have to end up with parents who want to shelter me from the real world. Who shelter me from my world. From all of my friends." Tears started to flow down her cheeks. She brushed them away hastily. "Why did I have to live in a life that I hated so much?"  
  
"Then leave that life. Start a new one." Nathan took a couple of steps towards her. "Alex, if you don't like the life you're living, then leave it and start a new life. It makes sense doesn't it?"  
  
She gave him a watery smile. "I guess."  
  
"Then run away with me. We can go to Corus and join the Rogue there. We'll become one of the best thief team they've ever seen." He smiled gently down a few inches at her.  
  
Alex was suddenly aware of just how close he really was to her. She could almost feel the tinge of pink spreading across her face. Why was she suddenly so nervous around him? He was her best friends and she'd known him for years, so why did her whole body tingle?  
  
He didn't know why he did, he was just compelled to do so. He brushed a tear off her cheek before cupping her face in both hands. "I'm going to apologise."  
  
She looked a bit confused. "For what?"  
  
"This." Before she could say another word he swooped down and placed and soft kiss on her slightly parted lips. Nathan's hands slid down her arms until they rested on her hips, while hers rested on his fore arms. He deepened the kiss slowly. Alex melted into his arms. But hen her eyes flew open and she stiffened.  
  
"No." she whispered softly. "It wouldn't work between us. Sorry." Alex turned and fled into the darkness of night. Nathan sighed as he let her go. Alex would see what was right when she wanted to. For someone with sharpened vision she was sure blind.  
  
"I hope you know what you're doing, boy," Leo said from where he was leaning against the wall of the pub, next to the door.  
  
"So do I, Leo. So do I." Nathan shot a glance at the older man. "Alex will come around when she feels she should. Always was like that."  
  
"Tell me a bit about her." Nathan gave another sighed before her went back inside Leo on his tail, looking over the young man he knew would do great things with himself. How great he didn't really know.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
Golden snapped back to reality and started to blink at the bare ceiling of her room. He shoulders slumped as she realised that she couldn't go back to the way her life had been before Daniel started to terrorise it. She wished that Daniel would just disappear never to be seen again. But, she also knew that the only way she could live in peace would be if she killed Daniel and formally took the Queen of Knives position. "I wish life really were that simple," she whispered as she rolled over and slipped back into a dreamless sleep.  
  
~*~*~*  
  
I knew that it was lame and all but it was a necessary chapter in the plot line.  
  
Alex- if she had one.  
  
I do so have a plot line!  
  
Alex- sure you do.  
  
**kicks Alex out of computer room and locks that door** Please review and make me happy. That why I update more and chapters get a bit longer.  
  
L8rz!  
  
GalPhoe. 


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